Articulated foot construction and mounting for a doll or the like



Feb. 23, 196@ co ARTICULATED FOOT CONSTRUCTION AND MOUNTING FOR A DOLLOR THE LIKE Filed Aug. 30, 1.956

2 Sheets-Sheet l F/GJ INVENTOR DAVID COHN ATTORNEYS Feb. 23, 19% D. COHN2325,63 v ARTICULATED FOOT CONSTRUCTION AND MOUNTING FOR A DOLL OR THELIKE Filed Aug. 50, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTO DAVID COHN wa I RNEYSof the leg. 'balland socket-like elements into cooperating engagement,and thus urging the laterally extending member within the socket into aselected one of the seat por- ARTICULATED FGUT CONSTRUCTIQN AND MOUNTFNGFOR A DQLL QR THE LiKE David (John, Brooklyn, N.Y., assignor to ModelPlastic Corporation, White Plains, Njifl, a corporation of New YorkApplication August 30, 1956, Serial No. 607,196

3 Claims. (Cl. iii-473) The present invention relates to a novelconstruction for an ankle joint in a doll, and to an articulated footconstruction useable therewith.

Dolls, and. particularly those manufactured on a quantity basis for useby children, are usually made with rigid ankle joints and with rigidfeet. The advantages attendant upon making the ankle joint articulate,as are the shoulder and hip joints of conventional dolls, are obvious.Such articulation would materially increase the enjoyment afforded tothe youthful user of the doll by permitting the doll to simulate moreclosely the actions and attitudes of humans. Nevertheless, anklearticulation has not been commercially adopted, largely because it wasnot thought possible to produce an ankle joint which would be articulatein a manner comparable to that of the human ankle and which at the sametime could be readily manufactured and would retain the foot in desiredposition relative to the leg until such time as that position is to bechanged.

I have developed, and here disclose and claim, an ankle jointconstruction for a doll or the like which satisfies the aboverequirements. It may be manufactured cheaply and on a quantity scale,such additional parts as it requires are inexpensive, sturdy, and neednot be manufactured to any particular degree of precision, and it isvery readily assembled.

The joint construction in question may be said to simulate a ball andsocket joint. Ball and socket joints are common in doll constructions,but in their pure form they suffer from the drawback, for thisparticular purpose, of universal movement as between two connectedparts. In addition, ball and socket joints, even when the joint elementsare resiliently urged toward one another, offer only a limited degree ofresistance to relative movement of the connected parts. This too is notparticularly satisfactory for an ankle joint, since the foot mustsupport the weight of the doll and may be subjected to appreciableforce, particularly if an attempt should be made to cause the doll towalk. Accordingly a conventional type of ball and socket joint wasunsuitable for an ankle joint.

In accordance with the present invention the ball-like of the foot, andthe ball-like portion carried by the leg is received therein. However,the ball and socket eu- ;gagernent does not extend over the completearea of the ball-like element or socket-like element.

Instead the socket-like element carries a laterally extending memberfixed to the foot and adapted to be engaged in a selected one of theseat portions carried by the lower surface Resilient means are providedfor urging'the tats Patent tions carried by the ball. Since the seatportions are spaced from one another from the front to the rear of theleg, movement of the laterally extending member from one seat portion toanother will cause a change in the orientation of the foot relative tothe leg. Since the seat portions extend laterally across the lowersurface of the leg, movement of the'foot relative to the leg ispermitted relatively only in a single plane, thus substantiallycorresponding to the actual eliective articulation of the human footrelative to the human leg.

The foot and leg are connected by means of a securing member receivedwithin the leg, resiliently urged upwardly and having a lower endengageable with the laterally extending member carried by the foot. Thesecuring member is movable downwardly against the action of theresilient element through a slot formed in the lower surface of the legand intersecting the seat portions. In order to facilitate assembly ofthe structure, the interior of the leg is provided with a partitionagainst which the upper end of the securing member is urged by theresilient element when that member is disconnected from the foot, thesecuring member then being held in such a position that access to itslower end is facilitated when the foot is to be connected thereto.

It may be desired, particularly in conjunction with a foot articulatelymounted relative to the doll leg, to provide for articulation of thefoot itself as between the instep portion and the toe portion thereof soas to provide for better support of the doll when the foot is pointeddown and so as to further simulate the action of the human foot.Accordingly an embodiment of the present invention is here illustrated,the structure permitting such foot articulation being combined andcoordinated with the ankle joint structure in an effective mannerparticularly from the point of view of inexpensiveness of construction.

To the accomplishment of the above, and to such other objects as mayhereinafter appear, the present invention relates to the construction ofan articulated doll ankle joint and an articulated foot useabletherewith, as defined in the appended claims and as described in thisspecification, taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a doll in which the present invention isembodied;

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view on an enlarged scale of the lowerportion of a doll leg and of a doll foot constructed according to thepresent invention, the foot being shown in normal flat position relativeto the leg;

Fig. 3'is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the foot in slightlypointed position relative to the leg, simulating the foot position whenhigh-heeled shoes are worn;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the foot in extremepointed position relative to the leg, simulating a toe-dancing posture;

Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view taken along the line 5-5 ofFig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a cross sectional view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the legalone and illustrating the stand-by position of the securing member whenit is not attached to a j foot;

"lately connected thereto.

Figs. 7, 8 and 9 are similar respectively to Figs. 2, 3 and 4 exceptthat they disclose a foot in which the instep portion and toe portionare articulately connected, the relative positions of these footportions corresponding to the positions of the feet with respect to thelegs; and

Fig. 10 is a cross sectional view of the articulated foot, taken alongthe line 1ill0 of Fig. 7.

The construction of the present invention is designed for use in a dollsuch as that shown in Fig. 1, that doll comprising a body 2 having arms4 and legs 6 articu- In accordance with the present Patented Feb. 231,1960 invention the legs are provided with feet 8 articulately connectedthereto.

The legs 6 and 8 are, as is conventional, molded to shape from somesuitable plastic material. closed, the leg 6 is provided with a hollowinterior 10, as is customary, and terminates in a lower end 12 having alower surface generally designated 14. A series of grooves 16, hereshown as three in number and designated 16a, 16b and 16a respectively,are formed on that lower surface 14, the grooves 16 extending laterallyacross the lower leg surface 14 from side to side of the leg 6 and beingspaced from one another from the front to the rear of the leg 6, thegroove 16a being closest to the front of the leg, the groove 16c beingclosest to the rear of the leg, and the groove 16!; being locatedbetween the grooves 16a and 160. For purposes of rigiditication andwear-resistance, it is preferred that the grooves 16 be formed in ametal insert 13 around which the leg 6 is molded, that metal insert 18being exposed through an opening 29 at the lower end of the leg 6. Anelongated slot 25 is provided in the lower leg surface 14 extending fromfront to rear of the leg 6, intersecting the grooves 16, andcommunicating with the hollow leg interior 10.

Mounted within the leg is a securing member 22 in the form of anelongated rod or the like having a hooked bottom end 23 and having anenlarged upper head 24. A compression spring 26 encircles the body ofthe securing member 22, engages the undersurface of its head 24, and ismaintained in compression within the hollow leg interior so as to urgethe securing member 22 upwardly. The width of at least the lower portionof the securing member 22, including the hook 23, is such that it canpass freely through the slot 25'. In order to facilitate the support ofthe securing member 22 within the hollow leg interior it) and to guideits movement therein, a partition 28 may be formed across the hollow leginterior 10 somewhat above the lower leg surface 14, that partition 28being provided with an opening 30, preferably somewhat elongated fromfront to rear 'of the leg 6, through which the appropriate portions ofthe securing member 22 are freely passable. of the compression spring 26may bear against the partition 28, and a washer 32 may be interposedbetween the lower end of the spring 26 and the partition 28.

The foot 8 is provided with a recess 34 at its upper surface into whichthe lower end 12 of the leg 6 is adapted to be received, the recess 34thus acting as a socket or receptacle for the leg end 12. However, thedepth of the recess 34 is considerably greater than that required toreceive the leg end 12, so that it is only the upper peripheral portions36 of the foot 8 at the opening of the recess 34 which actuallycooperate with the leg end 12. This cooperation may be actual physicalcontact, but it is entirely feasible to provide for a slight clearancetherebetween either in some or all of the relative positions of the foot8 and leg 6, since the actual operative connection between the foot andleg is otherwise provided.

Extending laterally across the recess 34 is an element 38 in the form ofa pin fixed to the foot 8. This' pin isof asize such as to be receivablewithin any one of the-grooves 16 formed in the lower leg surface 14,those grooves 16 therefore constituting seat portions for .the pin 38.The pin 38 is also of a size such as to be engageable by the hookedlower end 23 of the securing member 22. When the securing member 22 andthe pin 38 are thus engaged the spring 26, in moving the securingmember.22 upwardly, will cause the foot 8 to move upwardly until the legend 12 is received within the recess 34 of the'foot 8 and the pin 38carried by the foot 8 is received within-av selected one of the grooves16.

In Fig. l the pin 38 is shown. received in the groove 16a. Inthislposition the foot 8 is oriented substantially at rightrangles .tothe. leg 6, thus simulating the normal As here dis- The lower end 4position of the foot. It will be noted that the securing member 22 maytilt rearwardly somewhat when the foot is in this position. The force ofthe spring 26 in retaining the pin 33 within the seat portion or groove16a will cause the foot 8 to tend to remain in the position disclosed inFig. 1 despite the application of moderate dislocative forces thereto,and the side to side orientation of the groove 16a will prevent the foot8 from twisting from one side to another relative to the foot 8.

When it is desired to move the foot 3 to a more pointed positionsimulating tip-toe walking or the wearing of high-heeled shoes, whichposition is illustrated in Fig. 3, it is merely necessary to exertsufficient force on the foot 8 to cause the pin 38 to slide out from thegroove or seat portion 16a and move into groove or seat portion 16b.Once again the spring 26 will tend to retain the foot 8 in the positionto which it has been adjusted. It will be noted that in this positionthe securing member 22 may tend to assume a substantially verticalposition within the hollow leg interior 16'.

If it is desired that the foot 8 should assume an even more pointedposition, simulating toe dancing, for example, which position isillustrated in Fig. 4, it is merely necessary to apply sufficient forceto the foot 8 to cause the pin 38- to move out from the groove or seatportion 16b and snap into the groove or seat portion 160. It will benoted that in this position the securing member 22 may tend to assume asomewhat forwardly inclined orientation relative to the leg 6.

In all positions of the foot 8 relative to the leg 6 the spring 26 issubstantially equally stressed, so that uniformity of action of the dollis assured no matter in which position the foot 8 may be.

In order to facilitate assembly of the leg 6 independently of the foot 8and to permit ready assembly of the leg 6 and foot 8 when that isdesired, a second partition 40 is provided in the hollow leg interior10, positioned above the partition 28 by a distance less than the lengthof the securing member 22 by an amount equal to a fraction, for example,three-quarters, of the distance between the partition 28 and the lowerleg surface 14. Hence, as may clearly be seen from Fig. 6, when thelower hooked end 23 of the securing member 22 is not engaged with thepin 38 on a foot 8, the spring 26 will expand and cause the head 24 ofthe securing member 22 to engage with the underside of the partition 40.In that position the lower hooked end 23 of the securing member '22 willbe moved upwardly through the slot 25 in the lower surface 14 so as tobe received in the space within the leg 6 between the partition 28 andlower leg surface 14. When it is desired to attach the leg 6 to a foot 8it is merely necessary to insert a tool through the slot 25 to engagethe securing member end 23 and pull it out through the slot 25 in thelower leg surface 14.

With the mticulated ankle joint construction here disclosed it becomesfeasible, both mechanically and economically, to employ a foot 8 havingarticulately connected instep portions 8a and toe portions 812. Thismodification is illustrated in Figs. 7-10. The instep portion 811carries the recess 34 and the pin 38. It also has an opening 42 at itsfront end, where the toe portion 8b is to :be connected thereto, thatopening 42 communicating with passage 44 which leads into the recess 34.The toe portion 812 is provided with a rearward extension 46 adapted tofit within the opening 42 so as to define therewith a ball and socketjoint which will permit relative movement of the toe portion 812 withrespect to the instep portion 8a in a vertical plane. Because of thelaterally elongated nature of the opening 42 and of the toe portion 8b,substantially no twisting of the toe portion 8b about a substantiallyhorizontal axis is permitted. The rearwardly projecting part of the toeportion 811 extends into the passage 44 and is provided with anciement48 engaged by one end of tension spring 50, that spring. 50 extendingthrough the passage 44 into the recess limits, to assume a naturalorientation relative to the instep portion 8a.

It will be noted from an examination of Figs. 2-4 and 79 that no matterin which position the foot 8 may be relative to the leg 6, the upperperipheral portions 36 of the foot 8 encompass the lower end 12 of theleg 6 to such an extent that neither the metal insert 18 nor the slot 25nor any of the grooves 16 are ever exposed to view. Thus the functionalnature and structure of the ankle joint is constantly hidden, and thejoint retains its necessary attractive smooth appearance.

It will be appreciated from the above that the construction heredisclosed is particularly well adapted to quantity production of dollsfor amusement purposes, adds but little to their production cost, andgives rise to a doll which may be efiectively used for amusementpurposes in ways not feasible with dolls having rigid ankle joints.

It will be apparent that many variations may be made in the specificdetails of the construction here disclosed without departing from thespirit of the invention as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. An articulated ankle joint for a doll comprising a leg having ahollow lower end terminating in a lower surface, said lower surfacehaving a slot therethrough elongated from the front to the rear of saidleg and communicating with the hollow interior of said leg, a securingmember in said leg passing through said slot and having a lower endextendible downwardly below said lower leg end, a resilient elementengaging said securing member and biasing said securing member upwardly,and a foot having a recess at its upper end into which the lower end ofsaid leg is movably received, and a laterally extending member in saidrecess, engageable with said lower surface of said leg and operativelyconnected to said lower end of said securing member, said resilientelement thus urging said foot upwardly toward said leg and saidlaterally extending member into engagement with said lower surface ofsaid leg, the slotted portion of said lower surface of said leg beingsubstan tially completely received within said foot recess in alloperative relative positions of said foot and said leg, a partitionacross said hollow interior of said leg above said slot and having anopening in registration with said slot, said securing member passingthrough said opening and extending thereabove, said resilient elementbeing positioned above said partition, and a second partition in saidleg above said first mentioned partition by a distance equal to thelength of said securing member minus a fraction of the distance betweensaid first partition and the lower surface of said leg, whereby, whenthe lower end of said securing member is released from said laterallyextending member, said resilient member will move said securing memberupwardly against said second partition and the lower end of saidsecuring member will be received in the space between said lower legsurface and said first partition.

2. An articulated ankle joint for a doll comprising a leg having ahollow lower end terminating in a lower surface having a series of seatportions extending la-terally thereacross and spaced from one anotherfrom the front to the rear of said leg, said lower surface having a slottherethrough intersecting said seat portions and communicating witht hehollow interior of said leg, a partition across said hollow interior ofsaid leg above said slot and having an opening in registration with saidslot, a securing member passing through said slot and opening, extendingabove said opening, and having a lower end extendible downwardly belowsaid lower leg end and movable through said slot, a resilient elementpositioned above said partition, engaging said securing mem her andbiasing said securing member upwardly, and a foot having a recess at itsupper end into which the lower end of said leg is movably received, anda laterally extending member in said socket, receivable in a selectedone of said seat portions, and operatively connected to said lower endof said securing member, said resilient element thus urging said footupwardly toward said leg and said laterally extending member into saidselected one of said seat portions, the slotted portion of said lowerend of said leg being substantially completely received within said footrecess no matter which of said seat portions receives said laterallyextending element, and a second partition in said leg above said firstmentioned partiton by a distance equal to the length of said securingmember minus a fraction of the distance between said first partition andthe lower surface of said leg, whereby, when the lower end of saidsecuring member is released from said laterally extending member, saidresilient member will move said securing member upwardly against saidsecond partition and the lower end of said seeming member will bereceived in the space between said lower leg surface and said firstpartition.

3. The ankle joint of claim 2, in which said laterally extending elementcomprises a pin and said lower end of said securing member comprises ahook engageable around said pin.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,654,933 Heyman Jan. 3, 1928 2,687,594 Cleaver Aug. 31, 1954 2,780,030Beebe -1. Feb. 5, 1957 2,783,587 Gardel et a1. Mar. 5, 1957

